Reparative therapy, Christianity, videos

I don't want this thread to be a flame-war, I'm just hoping that anyone struggling with faith and homosexuality might find these videos helpful. Particularly anyone who is considering, or being offered reparative / "Ex-Gay" therapy. I don't know whether this fits better here or in the support forum.

I'll start with a few on "personal experiences" with Ex-gay therapy.

This young man was basically dragged in by his parents. The therapist basically said (in kind words) no one can force you to go through with this. It must be something you personally want.
[youtube]5kPo7KGj1OE[/youtube]

This young man went in as a practicing Christian, looking for help, but found it ineffective.
[youtube]PDn7cEgxvtg[/youtube]

This older gentleman was in ex-gay program, was married for 15 years, then he realized he was still gay. From his group of 50, he only knows of 1 that's still married with children.
[youtube]BYfSL84ft9U[/youtube]

This young man is a born-again Christian who is trying to deal with and eliminate his homosexual tendencies. He still deals with temptation at times. He's also trying to cope with his gay mannerisms.
http://www.youtube.com/user/revolutionaryhorizon

There are several talk shows on the issue. Here's a "Sally" episode dealing with very religious gays & ex-gay leaders. There's a segment in part 3 where a Mormon couple recount the coming out of their son. It is one of the most touching stories I have ever heard and made me tear up (and I never cry!) it is 5:00 into the third part, which I have also embedded below.
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
[youtube]AtyLBrcT2R8[/youtube]

CBC: The Hour: On the film Abomination
This film is about "inside" ex-gay treatments. At 7:20 a couple interesting statistics are given:
13% of participants experience change
Of that 1/3 are celibate
1/3 Are married to a woman, but still have thoughts about men
1/3 Say they're cured, most work in Ex-Gay ministry, but there are many scandals of relapse Including founding members of the group Exodus

Ex-gay therapist Richard Cohen on Jimmy Kimmel. The show host doesn't give him much credit. He claims an 85% success rate… *cough*

Why the Spitzer study, commonly cited as evidence that gays can change, and for other anti-gay propaganda, is flawed. Great quote at 5:28 in the second video where the author of the study says that the study is not proof that for the denial of gay rights, nor that all gays should try to change
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ktrtYpNTtCw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HuJS1iP3Qgg

President of Exodus: Leading organizations in Ex-gay therapy on a talk show. He doesn't even understand what his own website says. A guest on the show is a young gay youth whose parents forced him to go to an ex-gay program, and as a minor he was in a group with a convicted sexual offender.

Also a guy that spent over $30,000 on ex-gay therapies, 3 exorcisms, is very Christian, tried desperately to become straight. Got married, but still thought of men while having sex, and eventually cheated on is wife.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fsYsusY1ALQ
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-RPFfJazaoo

Christian Broadcasting Network: New study on Gays Ability to Go Straight!
38% experience change! Some were able to shift to opposite sex attraction! The rest just led empty celibate lives. Ooo wow! What success!

To end on a lighter note, here's a cartoon that I think should be played as part of every middle school sex-ed class:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ay5n2mRibpw

And this is just funny:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FQw1S9Y_eck

I was trying to find a couple videos that I saw a couple months ago that were interviews with people who actually ran Ex-gay programs but I couldn't find them. But on the upside I found a lot of the videos above.

Here's a couple take home points:

• No American mental health organization recognizes homosexuality as a disease or condones gay reparative therapy. This is based on actual scientific data and research.
• Actual statistical data on the success rate pegs it at 12-34%, with many of those men "relapsing", marrying and still having homosexual desires, repressing any sexual desire for anything, or becoming involved in Ex-gay ministry, with a good change of falling under one of the above categories too.
• Many statistics used by Ex-gay groups on the success rates are either horribly unscientific, or take other studies and twist them out of context.
• If you go through with Gay reparative therapy, it must be your decision and your decision alone (not that I think it's a good idea). If you are forced into it that's beyond immoral.
• There is nothing I've found in the bible that says that parents should not love their LGBT children. If anything they should support and love them through difficult times.
• I found tons of recounts of people who when to Ex-gay therapy that found it useless or damaging, but I didn't find any from people who weren't in Ex-gay ministries. Surely if someone found a cure to "the gay" they'd be excited to share it, no?

A personal opinion of mine is that a lot of these xx-gay programs involve repressing desires, and it seem very ineffective. I wonder if the few who succeed in living heterosexual lives aren't just bi-sexual to begin with, so they're only living a half-truth instead of a lie.

EDIT:
This is my post 666. Surely a sign I'm going to hell.

 

I like when she talks about taking away your Calvins and your Abercrombies